McCullom Lake, Illinois
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
McCullom Lake is a village in McHenry County, Illinois, United States. The population was 1,038 at the 2000 census.
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[edit] Geography
McCullom Lake is located at (42.369561, -88.293941)GR1.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of 0.7 km² (0.3 mi²), all land. Anyone who doesn't work for the government realizes that McCullom LAKE is on the northwest shore of a body of water commonly referred to as McCullom Lake. McHenry occupies the southeast shore. The Lake is well known locally for excellent ice fishing. Shallow weeds in the late summertime make the beach dangerous (drownings have occurred) and have limited gamefishing.
[edit] Demographics
As of the censusGR2 of 2000, there were 1,038 people, 382 households, and 273 families residing in the village. The population density was 1,431.3/km² (3,708.2/mi²). There were 418 housing units at an average density of 576.4/km² (1,493.3/mi²). The racial makeup of the village was 96.44% White, 0.87% African American, 0.48% Native American, 0.29% Asian, 0.10% Pacific Islander, 1.25% from other races, and 0.58% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.24% of the population.
There were 382 households out of which 38.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.3% were married couples living together, 9.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.5% were non-families. 22.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 5.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.72 and the average family size was 3.22.
In the village the population was spread out with 28.0% under the age of 18, 9.0% from 18 to 24, 35.9% from 25 to 44, 19.7% from 45 to 64, and 7.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females there were 100.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 104.1 males.
The median income for a household in the village was $54,500, and the median income for a family was $59,423. Males had a median income of $40,238 versus $26,100 for females. The per capita income for the village was $20,350. About 5.2% of families and 5.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.1% of those under age 18 and 1.8% of those age 65 or over.
[edit] Class Action Lawsuit
On April 25, 2006, several residents of McCullom Lake filed a class-action lawsuit against five manufacturing companies in the area, claiming that the companies illegally dumped chemicals in the local groundwater for over fifty years while willfully covering up the severity and frequency of such instances. The lawsuit was filed by a Philadelphia attorney on behalf of a group next-door neighbors who all contracted a rare form of brain cancer, two of whom have died. On May 23, 2006, officials from the McHenry County Health Department testified that the number of cancers in the area was not above average. Only a few days later, on May 26, three more lawsuits were filed in a Philadelphia court, bringing the number of plaintiff families in the case to six. Some local residents have criticized the McHenry County Health Department, charging that it has not taken a more active role in the investigation, citing the agency's failure to issue an official statement regarding the lawsuits for over a month after they were filed.
The companies named in the suit, including Rohm and Haas, one of the largest chemical companies in the United States who only recently moved to the area, have denied responsibility for the cancer cases and say they will fight the suit in court. The plants in question in the lawsuits are located in the adjacent community of Ringwood, Illinois.
The story has been covered in depth by the local newspaper, the Northwest Herald, published in nearby Crystal Lake, Illinois. Although an important story locally, the story has received only passing coverage in other media, such as the major newspapers of Chicago.
[edit] External links
- Maps and aerial photos
- Street map from Google Maps, or Yahoo! Maps, or Windows Live Local
- Satellite image from Google Maps, Windows Live Local, WikiMapia
- Topographic map from TopoZone
- Aerial image or topographic map from TerraServer-USA
- http://ww2.nwherald.com/pdf/mccullom_lake/index.html, a Northwest Herald article compilation covering the class action lawsuit and surrounding controversy
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Municipalities and Communities of McHenry County, Illinois (County Seat: Woodstock) |
|---|---|
| Cities, Towns and Villages | Algonquin | Barrington Hills | Bull Valley | Cary | Crystal Lake | Fox Lake | Fox River Grove | Greenwood | Harvard | Hebron | Holiday Hills | Huntley | Island Lake | Johnsburg | Lake in the Hills | Lakemoor | Lakewood | Marengo | McCullom Lake | McHenry | Oakwood Hills | Pistakee Highlands (CDP) | Port Barrington | Prairie Grove | Richmond | Ridgefield | Ringwood | Solon Mills | Spring Grove | Sunnyside | Trout Valley | Union | Wonder Lake | Wonder Lake (CDP) | Woodstock |
| Townships | Alden| Algonquin | Burton | Chemung | Coral | Dorr | Dunham | Grafton | Greenwood | Hartland | Hebron | Marengo | McHenry | Nunda | Richmond | Riley | Seneca |
| Points of Interest | Chain O'Lakes State Park | Fox River | Golden Corridor | Moraine Hills State Park | McHenry County College | UP/Northwest Line |
| Airports | Lake in the Hills Airport |
